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Healthy Valley 2000 Commission for Community Health Sets Local Health Priorities |
Every year in Mahoning County more than a thousand people die of diseases and injuries caused by smoking, violence, poor diet, lack of exercise, or because they didn't get an immunization or screening test. A 25-member Healthy Valley 2000 Commission for Community Health has spent the last year researching these and other local health problems using health data from the County Board of Health, community hospitals and the federal government. The Commission announced its findings in a report listing five top priorities for healthier communities in Mahoning County:
- reducing the number of violent deaths in Mahoning County, particularly among persons between the ages of 15 and 24.
- reducing the incidence of tobacco, alcohol and other drug use by persons under the age of 18.
- increasing the proportion of persons who regularly seek physical exams, including mammograms, pap smears, prostate and colorectal cancer screening, and cholesterol screening.
- increasing the proportion of people age six and older who engage regularly in light to moderate physical activity.
- reducing the proportion of pregnancies that are unintended.
It wasn't easy choosing priorities from all the health problems in Mahoning County, according to YSU professor Robert Weaver, Commission chair. "In the year to come, the Commission will focus on a detailed analysis of the five priorities and propose actions that the boards of health, hospitals and other community organizations must take to achieve these goals," Weaver said.
The Healthy Valley 2000 Commission, made up of business people, health care
workers and educators, expects to seek community reaction to its findings through
public forums and focus groups before it presents its final plan by the end of 1997 to
the health agencies sponsoring the project.
Lake to River Health Care Coalition
Mahoning County Board of Health
Mahoning County Coroner
Mahoning County Medical Society
Saint Elizabeth Health Center
Western Reserve Health Care
Youngstown Board of Health
Youngstown/Mahoning Valley United Way
Youngstown State University